The disappointing performance of the school system in Italy is one of the likely factors that reduce growth in this country. We take it as a case study with interesting implications for other European countries with similar school systems. Lack of funding is not the answer. The Italian school...

Do banks with low capital extend excessive credit to weak firms, and does this matter for aggregate efficiency? Using a unique data set that covers almost all bank-firm relationships in Italy in the period 2004-2013, we find that, during the Eurozone financial crisis: (i) Under-capitalized banks...